SHM Converge Scientific Abstract ePoster Gallery-Subspecialty Consult Utilization in Hospital at Home

Pdf Summary

Mount Sinai’s Hospital-at-Home (HaH) program expanded to care for increasingly complex patients who often need subspecialty input similar to brick-and-mortar hospital care. To meet this need, the team used its Command Center to build a standardized consult workflow for common medicine subspecialties.<br /><br />Before this process was formalized, HaH clinicians often relied on informal “curbside” consultations for complex cases. The new system created a clear path: clinicians place consults in the EMR with urgency levels, STAT consults are immediately routed to the Command Center, routine consults follow standard hospital protocols, and video visits are scheduled around nursing visits using HIPAA-compliant links. Nurses help facilitate these virtual visits, and recommendations are communicated through usual channels.<br /><br />The team identified needed subspecialties based on patient admission diagnoses and worked with the Command Center to locate staffing resources across the health system. Consult teams were educated about the HaH model and workflow to support smooth virtual consultation.<br /><br />From January 2024 to March 2025, the program tracked 461 consults across 14 specialty services. The authors report that this consult availability has improved the ability to deliver care equivalent to inpatient hospitalization while potentially reducing escalation and preserving hospital resources. They also believe it has helped broaden access to more complex patients in the HaH program.<br /><br />Overall, the abstract shows that a centralized, standardized tele-consult process can successfully support a growing Hospital-at-Home model and may serve as a useful example for other institutions.

Asset Subtitle

Sanaa Zafar

Meta Tag

Author List Betsy Collazo, Irina Zaretsky, Jeffrey D. Epstein, Sanaa Zafar, Tuyet-Trinh Truong

Category Innovations

Concept Home-Based Acute Care

Concept Subspecialty Consultation

Concept Command Center

Concept Consult Workflow

Concept Routine Consult

Distinguished Finalist

Presenter Organization Mount Sinai West and Mount Sinai Hospital at Home

Presenting Author Sanaa Zafar

Track Consultative Medicine

Keywords

Hospital-at-Home

Command Center

standardized consult workflow

subspecialty consultations

tele-consult

EMR consults

HIPAA-compliant video visits

complex patients

inpatient-equivalent care

health system resources

Home-Based Acute Care

Subspecialty Consultation

Command Center

Consult Workflow

Routine Consult